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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. shower — to wash
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. present — a gift
  8. shower — rain
  9. spell — magic
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. degree — from a university
  12. degree — an amount
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. present — the time now
  15. spell — a short time
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. spell — letters
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. present — there
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. prune — to trim
  24. degree — temperature

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com